The Big 12 announced a new rule for its members prior to the upcoming football season. Joining the rest of the power conferences, each team will be required to produce an availability report prior to kickoff.
Big 12 will release availability reports for league football & basketball games this season, sources told @On3sports. All of the Power 4 conferences will now provide availability reports this seasonhttps://t.co/ZDYrkXTIgQ
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 13, 2025
Just like an NFL injury report, each team will provide a publicly available list of who's playing, who isn't, and who probably isn't. This report will be submitted no later than 3 days before game day and another 90 minutes before kickoff. Basketball isn't exempt from this ruling, however, and will need to share the same information once the hardwood heats up.
Designations will be assigned in the following categories: available, probable, questionable, doubtful, or out. For basketball, out, game-time decision, and available will suffice.
BYU fans are already poking fun at opposing teams online, specifically Utah, as Coach Whittingham's transparency in this subject has been, well, opaque. Need I remind anyone of the Cam Rising saga, where his availability seemed to constantly swing from "he's a game-time decision. You'll see him under center this week" to "he may never touch a football again"?
https://t.co/gjls3lxSuE pic.twitter.com/8JTNTMctsO
— Robby McCombs (@rtmccombs) August 13, 2025
Still, this rule change coincides with the ACC's implementation, as this will likewise be the first season that the conference shares availability reports in both basketball and football. The Big 10 started the trend in 2023, and it's now spread to the remainder of the power four in just two years.
The line between collegiate and professional is blurring all the time. This decision provides increased transparency for the fans and is undoubtedly a good decision. Even if it means a bit more paperwork.